Roul’s Deli, a hamburger restaurant located at the Northgates, caught fire around 12 a.m. Wednesday morning.
The cause of the fire centralized to the kitchen area is still undetermined, according to Shane Dedon, Health Safety Officer for the Baton Rouge Fire Department.
Dedon said the extent of the internal damage is still undetermined, but said the fire stayed contained to Roul’s and did not spread to the adjacent buildings.
Dedon said the fire department was able to respond quickly because the fire station is located only a littler farther down Highland Road.
“They got a good stop, and they put it under control quickly,” Dedon said.
Dedon said an investigator from the fire department was on the way shortly after the fire was extinguished around 12:20 a.m. He said the investigator would look to see if the fire was “suspicious in nature.”
Kristin Baldassari, biology senior, said she was smoking a cigarette outside the Chimes when she smelled the smoke.
“We just smelled it and ran over,” Baldassari said. “Then we saw the smoke and the back room on fire.”
Baldassari said she saw firemen breaking down the door of the building with an axe, but did not see anyone taken out of the building once the fire had started.
Dedon said the owner had not been contacted yet, but said the fire department was still trying to reach him as of 12:30 a.m.- – – – Contact Adam Duvernay at [email protected]